Traction wheel



Feb. 7,1939. c. D. DIILLINGHAM TTTTTTTTTTT EL NNNNNN OR C. D. Owing/2amFeb; 7,1939.

c. D. DILLINGHAM TRACTION WHEEL Filed Feb. 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR 12 ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 7, 1939 I v e 2,146,175

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TRACTION WHEEL Carl D. Dillingham, Oakland,Calif. Application February 14, 1938, Serial No. 190,447 5 Claims. (01.305-41) This invention relates in general to a traction boss. Theprojecting ends of spindle 8 are jourwheel for motor vehicles and inparticular the naled in antifriction bearings 9 in the outer endsinvention is directed to a traction'wheel especially of thecorresponding fork 3. Caps prevent acdesigned for use on vehiclestraversing loose sand cess of dust and dirt to such bearings. As so orearth as on the desert. mounted, the cups may have easy pivotal move- 5,

The principal objects of my invention are to ment in the plane ofrotation of the wheel. To provide a traction wheel of the type describedlimit such pivotal movement and prevent one cup which provides a maximumof traction; to profrom striking an adjacent cup as said cups apvide atraction wheel including shock absorbing proach a ground engagingposition, I provide a w mechanism; and to provide a traction wheel pairof spaced, longitudinally extending stop ribs 10 which may be used inconnection with present H on the back of cups on each side of the boss.vehicles without reconstruction of the driving These stops are spaced adistance equal to that and wheel mounting mechanism. between the legs ofthe fork so that when a cup A further object of the invention is toproduce swings one way or the other, the legs engage the 1.5 a simpleand inexpensive device and yet one stops after predetermined swingingmovement of 16 which will be exceedingly effective for the purthe cup.pose for which it is designed. Each cup is provided with a groundengaging These objects I accomplish by means of such plate l2 disposedwithin the cup with a loose run- 7 structure and relative arrangement ofparts as ni-ng fit. A heavy duty helical spring I3 is con- 20 Will fullyappear by a perusal of the following nected in fixed relation betweenthe bottom of the 20 specification and claims. cupand the plate, eachcoil of the spring being In the drawings similar characters of referenceof substantially rectangular configuration and indicate correspondingparts in the several views: rounded at the corners. A symmetrical bumperFigure 1 is a side elevation of my improved flange 14 depends into thespring from the bottom traction wheel; one of the traction members beofeach cup and limits the movement of the plate 25 ing shown in section.l2 into the cup. This flange I4 is centrally cut Figure 2 is a side viewof one of the wheel away at both sides and ends, as at l5, so thatspokes and attached traction member. sand, dirt, etc. can pass from thecup about the Figure 3 is a bottom view of one traction memspringthrough outlet ports l6 cut through the her with the ground engagingplate partly broken back of the cup on both sides of the boss. By 30away. reason of this arrangement, dirt and sand cannot Figure 4 is anenlarged cross section of one tracclog in the cup and which wouldotherwise retion member and the adjacent attached portion strictmovement of plate l2. of the corresponding wheel spoke. In use, thewheel has little tendency to sink Refering now more particularly to thecharinto sand or loose dirt over which it is passing acters of referenceon the drawings, my imas the cups cannot readily be pressed into theproved traction wheel comprises a hub I from sand or loose dirt and thewheel, in effect, walks which radiate a plurality of wheel spokes 2;each thereover. spoke being formed at the outer end with a In thepresent embodiment of the invention two laterally disposed fork 3. Aband 4 is formed of the cup traction members are in full engagewith andstrengthens spokes adjacent the forks ment with the ground at all times.while an integral bracing web 5 extends between Due to the freedom ofturning of the cups, they one side of each spoke 2 and the fork 3. Thetend to swing toward a ground engaging position hub I is bored, asat Band includes a key way as as the wheel turns, and by reason of the stopribs shown; the wheel thus being adapted to be |l,they are held inasubstantially horizontal and 45 mounted on the axle of a motor vehiclein the ground engaging position before they actually usual manner.engage the ground, so that such engagement when The fork'at the outerend of each spoke carries it takes place will be flat and firm. Theplates a traction member which is constructed and I2, being depressibleinto the cups, allow the mounted as follows: rims of the cups to serveas grousers, while al- 50 Each traction member comprises a hollowrecways maintaining their own flat contact with the tangular foot or cup6 open outwardly of the ground. Also the plates being resilientlymounted, wheel. A transverse boss 1 is formed on the back have acushioning or shock absorbing action so of the rectangular cup 6 and adouble ended that the wheel does not ride hard. spindle 8 is mounted inand projects from such From the foregoing description it will be read-55 ily seen that I have produced such a device as substantially fulfillsthe objects of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detailthe present and preferredconstruction of the device, still in practice such deviations from suchdetail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit ofthe invention, as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and useful anddesire to secure by Letters Patent is: p

1. A motor vehicle traction wheel comprising a hub, rigid spokesradiating from the hub,a metallic cup mounted on the outer end of eachspoke and open outwardly of the wheel, a ground engaging plate disposedin each cup for inward movement, and a compression spring between eachplate and bottom of the corresponding cup whereby to resist such inwardmovement of the plate; there being a port through the bottom of each cupand through which port sand or dirt in the cup under the plate mayescape.

2. A motor vehicle traction wheel comprising a hub, rigid spokesradiating from the hub, a metallic cup mounted on the outer end of eachspoke and open outwardly of the wheel, a ground engaging plate disposedin the cup for inward movement, and a compression spring between theplate and bottom of the cup whereby to resist inward movement of theplate; the spring being fixed at one end to the plate and at the otherend to the bottom of the cup.

3. A motor vehicle traction wheel comprising a hub, rigid spokesradiating from the hub, a metallic cup mounted on the outer end of eachspoke and open outwardly of the wheel, aground engaging plate disposedin the cup for inward movement, and a compression spring between theplate and bottom of the cup whereby to resist inward movement of theplate; there being a stop element projecting outwardly from the bottomof the cup within the spring whereby to limit inward movement of theplate after predetermined movement thereof against the compression ofthe spring.

4. A motor vehicle traction wheel comprising a hub, rigid spokesradiating from the hub, a metallic cup mounted on the outer end of eachspoke and open outwardly of the wheel, a ground engaging plate disposedin the cup: for inward movement, a helical compression spring disposedin the cup between the plate and bottom of the cup whereby to resistinward movement of the plate, the spring being substantially symmetricalto the plate and of a diameter to engage the plate in relatively closeproximity to the edges thereof, a symmetrical bumper flange projectingoutwardly from the bottom of the cup and closely surrounded by thespring; saidfiange being cut away at spaced points and the bottom of thecup within the flange having a port formed therethrough.

5. A motor vehicle traction wheel comprising a hub, rigid spokesradiating from the hub, each spoke being formed at its outer end with afork disposed transversely of the wheel, one leg of each fork beingalined with the spoke and the other leg disposed laterally outward ofthe vertical plane of the spoke, a traction cup disposed beyond eachspoke, and means mounting said cups in connection with the correspondingforks adjacent their outer ends and for pivotal movement in the plane ofrotation of the wheel; the cups being mounted on the forks so that theirlateral inner edges are disposed in a plane adjacent the correspondingedges of the spokes.

CARL D. DILLINGHAM.

